When The Stars Aren't Bright Enough
by ThisIsAwesomeness
Summary: "His hand was a little bigger than hers." Because like anything else, their love wasn't perfect. Soulmate AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Because I realized that I haven't written a Soulmate AU yet. And I'm kind of wanting to write this thing for ages then I got a severe case of writer's block. Yeah.**

* * *

His hand was a little bigger than hers.

It was frail; long and bony just like the rest of his body. And even though Annabeth was a head taller than him, his palm engulfed her whole hand; his fingers wrapped around her like branches of a willow tree. But the thing that she liked most about it was the warmth it gave off. Warm and steady like he was.

"Thanks for helping me," he said, his voice dripping with worry and fear. He dusted off his pants; his head bowed down like he's afraid he might scare her off.

"It's fine," Annabeth replied, because it was alright. She didn't like him worrying over things he shouldn't worry about. "What's your name?"

The boy stiffened, as if he didn't expect the question. He slowly raised his gaze to hers, his long, mess of a black hair brushing over his lids, but there's no mistaking in the bright glow of his eyes. It was a strange color, Annabeth thought so. There was something blue and green swirling around it, that briefly reminded her of the sea, and perhaps she could ask her teacher tomorrow about what color it was.

"Percy," he answered timidly.

Annabeth thrusted out her hand to him. They had been taught to shake hands when making friends. And besides, she liked holding his.

"I'm Annabeth," she mumbled and smiled at him. "We're friends now."

Percy's eyes snapped up to her, somehow disbelieving. He seemed to be afraid of the idea of having a friend. But the slightest of smiles graced his face, and Annabeth found herself grinning wider. It was a nice thing to make him smile, she thought.

"Friends," he repeated, tasting how the word rolled on his tongue.

They shook hands.

Later that time, when Annabeth's mom came to pick her up, Annabeth wondered how holding and shaking Percy's hand was far better than holding her mom's.

. . .

Annabeth saw him again two days after.

Her mom had something to do, so she's taking the bus to get home. It was actually her first time boarding alone, but she's not scared. She'd seen some of her classmates take the bus with their parents, and somehow she'd picked a few tips from those.

Annabeth was not scared. She was a smart kid after all.

So, she walked with her head held high, clutching the straps of her backpack as she neared the bus stop. To her surprise, she saw Percy standing there too.

"Hi Percy," she said, startling the boy.

"Annabeth," he greeted with a small smile.

Annabeth looked at him, noticing how his backpack was ill-proportioned with his small frame. Percy was all skin and bones, and his slouched stature didn't help at all.

"Are you taking the bus?" she asked warily.

"Yeah." He kept his head down, watching as his shoes scrunched on the pavement. Percy glanced at her through the corner of his eyes. "Are you taking the bus too?"

Annabeth nodded. She sidled closer to him, close but not touching. It was as if there's something about Percy that pulled her to him, something that she couldn't quite place. It wasn't gravity for sure, but it was more subtle. More careful.

"Can we sit together?" she asked shyly. She didn't meet his eyes.

"Sure," he answered, and for the first time, there's no worry and fear in his voice. There's only glee that matched the slow, careful smile on his lips. And Annabeth couldn't help but smile back.

When Annabeth got home that day, she argued with her mom that she was old enough to ride the bus home on her own. Thankfully, her mom accepted and the kid couldn't be any happier.

. . .

The next day, Annabeth sat with him again in the bus.

Percy was always quiet, so she tried to be quiet too. But it was awfully hard, and she decided she'll just try to draw something to pass the time.

She started drawing a house, the lines a little jagged because of the bus' motions. She was already getting at it, when she felt a set of eyes on her and realized Percy was watching her draw all along.

Annabeth turned to him. He glanced away, shyly.

She pushed the paper and pencil towards him. "You should draw too."

He fiddled with his fingers nervously. "I don't know how."

"Then I'll teach you," Annabeth said. She moved closer to him, her arm pressing against his. Then she took his hand with hers and guided it to make some shapes on the paper.

It was weird, how his hand was bigger than hers. But then she thought it was really fun to teach him how to draw. Plus, she could feel the warmth of his hand with hers, too.

When they finished drawing a stick man with a smiley face, Percy looked up to her with a first real smile on his face. It wasn't the slow, careful and guided smile he usually gave, and that made her smile back instantly. He looked really good when he actually smiled, she thought.

The next time they rode the bus together, Percy gave her a paper. It was a drawing of them; a stick Percy and a stick Annabeth with a 'FRIENDS' written on top. They argued about how stick Annabeth should be taller than stick Percy, and everything they could point about. But all through that, they were grinning like they never did before.

When Annabeth got home, she pasted the drawing inside her room and stared at it long enough so when she fell asleep, all she could dream was stick Annabeth and stick Percy.

. . .

Soon enough, the bus became a special place to them.

They would always sit together and somehow, they would always have something to busy themselves about. They would draw figures and characters on the papers, and arguing later about who did better. It was Annabeth who frequently prevailed. (Because she bribed Percy with donuts and stories.) Sometimes, they would exchange snacks; Percy with his blue cookies and Annabeth with her donuts. They had grown to love each other's food that sharing became a constant thing between them.

But at times when Percy wanted nothing to do but listen to her, Annabeth would read to him stories from her books. She usually read anything, most of them about history, science and stuff. Yet on special cases, she would read a fairytale themed, which were his favorites.

Annabeth thought it was really absurd to listen to her read. There wasn't anything special with her. She thought that perhaps, she could let him borrow her books and he could read those at home.

One time, while she was reading something about whales and sharks, she stopped midway and turned to him. "Why do you want me to read things to you?"

He didn't open his eyes, like he was still stuck in the world of whales. But he did reached for her hand and gripped her pinky, a signal for her to continue. "Because I like hearing you read."

Annabeth smiled at that.

So maybe, she liked reading books for Percy too. Because when he laughs at something she read, all she could hear was the carefree and childlike sound of his voice. And she'll read to him as long as he liked, so as to listen to his laugh like a lullaby being sung over and over in her head.

. . .

It's like they've always been together.

The word 'bestfriend' seemed too common, too inappropriate. There could be no further term to describe the intensity of their bond. It's as if they're a part of each other, the halves to their whole. Three years of friendship seemed to have been stretched to forever.

It's like they've always been together since forever.

She would unknowingly reach for his shirt when they're in a crowd, and he would be fumbling around until he could hold her hand. They're the anchors of each other, the ones keeping them on track.

And then there would be their hugs and special smiles; innocent touches and wistful gestures that only the two of them could understand. It had always been too simple, too Percy and Annabeth that no one bothered to question their friendship.

Not until they got their soulmate bracelets.

Those soulmate bracelets tickled the curiosity of Annabeth. The idea of wearing it and seeing it glow when she meets her soulmate seemed too magical, too fantastic. She didn't understand the whole meaning of soulmates yet. But that's okay. She got to wear her bracelet, anyway.

So after having it installed on her 11th birthday, Annabeth rushed to their usual place: the bus stop. She waited for him to come, her glee bouncing higher and higher as she stood there. Finally, Percy appeared and he hadn't even seen her yet when she ran towards him. She gave him a bone-crushing hug before stepping back and waving the bracelet in front of his eyes.

"You got it already?" Percy asked. There's a wide grin on his face, which was enlightened by Annabeth's glorious mood. "And happy birthday by the way."

She nudged his side playfully. "I'm older than you by a month, remember? And thanks too."

Percy slid his fingers with her and tugged gently. "C'mon. I've got something to show you, birthday girl."

As Annabeth followed his lead, all she could feel was the special tingling warmth of his hand on hers, and she momentarily forgot everything but him.

. . .

A month later, Percy got his soulmate bracelet too.

He was so ecstatic and he was so eager to show it to Annabeth. So he waited at the bus stop with his mom.

Sally knew about Percy's friendship with Annabeth, and she was really glad to see her son this happy. If his bestfriend could just make him smile like this always, then she would really wish they would end up together.

And when Annabeth finally came, flushed and giddy from running, she hugged Percy tight while mumbling 'happy birthday'.

The two kids were lost in their own Percy and Annabeth world, while Sally could only stare at their bracelets in shock.

It didn't glow.

. . .

* * *

 **Calm down.**

 **There's a part two or three, it depends. When? Let's just say I need to have enough inspiration to write.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi guys I'm back. This is the second part. Yeah. I think I'm gonna be MIA for awhile since school is almost starting. Yup. And I can't just leave this hanging unfinished. So yeah. There might've been a few changes with the style, but I don't know. Just try not to notice that. Bye.**

* * *

They were sitting at the swing, enjoying the last moments of Percy's 11th birthday. Sally had just left them so they could have a more private bestfriend time.

Percy reached for Annabeth's pinky as they sat at the swing. He smiled softly at her. "Hey."

Annabeth grinned at him. "Hey too."

He squeezed her hand. "Thanks for being my friend."

"I'm your bestfriend," she corrected him.

He laughed and she joined him too. "Really. Thanks, Annabeth."

"Yeah, right." She gestured on the swing. "You should push me, you know. Since I'm your bestfriend and all."

He slid off the seat and stood behind her. Percy pushed her with a force enough to make her giddy, but not at all terrifying. She giggled as she swung like a pendulum in the air.

He just watched as Annabeth laughed; her soft chuckles ringing loudly like bells chiming in his ears. It was something like a baby's laugh: genuine and pure happiness.

A moment later, the swing slowed down until it came into a stop.

"They didn't glow," Annabeth said after a while. "Our bracelets, I mean. They didn't glow."

There was something awful about pointing it out, she thought. It seemed more real, more true that they weren't soulmates. And even though she had the very shallow definition of it, it still brought a sinking feeling in her stomach, not fully understanding at all why.

"Oh." Percy moved in front of her while he fingered his bracelet. When he was excited about it days ago, he didn't seem so right now. It was as though it had lost it charm when it didn't glow. He'll admit, he had somehow expected it to emit the light when he held Annabeth. But it didn't. "We're not soulmates, then?"

Annabeth nodded.

He scrunched his eyebrows for a moment, as if he was thinking of something. "But even though. . . we aren't soulmates, we can still be bestfriends, right?" He stared at his shoes. "We can still be together, yeah?"

To be honest, Annabeth didn't know. But she wasn't just going to lose her bestfriend into some bracelet-thingy that predicts soulmate. She shrugged. "I guess so."

"Then that's okay," he decided with a grin. Percy raised his palm in the air, like a high-five paused in the middle. His sea green eyes bored into her, the sincerity present in them. "As long as we're together?"

She pressed her palm against his; her fingers dwarfing beside his towering ones. His hand was still warm, just like she had known. Then without breaking their gaze, she interlocked her fingers with his. It was so child-like, still too innocent to be anything more than a petty promise. But the gesture seemed to have meant much more than they would ever know; like their fates being intertwined too.

"As long as we're together," she repeated.

And it sounded like a promise.

. . .

It wasn't hard to return to normalcy after that.

Actually, they've gotten even more closer than before, if that was still possible. Slowly, her things became their things and his space became their space. And Percy and Annabeth became a single entity, one that most often used to refer to their relationship.

They were sitting at the steps of Percy's front porch.

He held her palm as he traced shapes, figures and words with his fingertip. At first it tickled, but Annabeth got used to it enough to find it comforting.

"Hey," he whispered. He shifted closer so their legs pressed. "Are you scared?"

She squinted a little in the darkness until she could see his eyes clearly. She shook her head. "Are you scared?" She asked back.

"Yeah," he answered. He wrote his name on her palm. "It's just that. . .high school seems like a scary place. And there are so many changes that will possibly happen there."

"And?"

He stared at their hands. "I'm afraid that we'll change too."

Her heart shuddered at the thought. She didn't want them to change. There was only Percy and Annabeth. Nothing more. Nothing less.

"We won't," she said, more to convince herself. Then, she looked into his eyes. "We won't let them."

He buried his face on her shoulder. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

When Percy pulled back, there's a big, dazzling smile on his face and she swore it could have outshone the sun itself. Or maybe because he was technically the sun himself.

. . .

Percy and Annabeth were bestfriends.

They weren't soulmates.

But there were these endless questions and rumors about their extreme closeness, about the state of their relationship. Many had asked, of course, if they were soulmates and they denied all of those. It wasn't true after all. Then the gossiping people would shake their heads at them, muttering something about pitying their situation. While some would comment about their inappropriate closeness, their friendship somehow being questioned.

But they ignored all of those. Those were just rumors after all.

"I don't understand them," Annabeth said. They were sitting together inside the bus, with Percy playing with her curls. He would occasionally tug and scratch on her scalp as she rested her head on his shoulder. "Why do they kept asking if we are soulmates?"

He let out a laugh. "Maybe because we're too close?"

She shifted and placed her chin where her head was resting moments ago. She stared at his eyes, noticing how its brightness had changed over the years. He had grown too. They now have the same height and he was slowly gaining some muscles, far from the scrawny boy he once was. He matched her gaze.

"Are we though?" She asked. "Are we too close?"

He curled his fingers in her ears as he tucked a stray curl back. "I don't think so," he whispered.

Then he let his nose brush lightly on her cheek, sliding down on the side of her jaw and onto the crook of her neck; inhaling the familiar vanilla and lemony scent of her.

Annabeth felt him smile on her skin, the touch sending a thousand tingles on her nerves. Her pulse was running a bit to fast and somehow she found herself asking the same question: _Are we too close?_

. . .

There were moments, of course, when she somehow believed the rumors were true.

Whenever they were just sitting, he would always touch her hair. He would be running his fingers on the length or he would be combing her hair and set it into a ponytail. Her curls were wild, mind you, but it somehow managed to be neater when he was holding it. Like there was a strange magic in his hands.

Then there's the time when they're just lying on their backs, watching the stars.

Percy was holding her hand, with their fingers intertwined between them. They were both staring up high; the stars dotting up the black sky.

"The stars are a wonderful creation," Annabeth whispered.

"Yes," he agreed. "Wonderful, indeed."

She stared up; the brightness of the stars burning themselves at the back of her eyes. "It's a shame that the world could only see their beauty at night."

He nodded and looked at her. "But it's the most beautiful things that shine in the dark."

The way he said it stirred a funny feeling in her stomach. It wasn't a negative one, per say, but she couldn't say it's positive either. Was it even right to feel this fuzzy warmth she gets when they're close? Or should she say, _too close_? Annabeth didn't want to say anything so she just smiled.

"I remembered that time," Percy began, tightening his hold on her hand. "When we talked about stars in our astronomy class."

This sparked her curiosity. "What about it?"

"The teacher talked about the different stars in the universe. How they vary in the energy they emit and their colors too. There was a bluish white star named Rigel, a red one called Betelgeuse and so many more."

She looked at him, surprised that he was looking at her too. There was a strange glow in his eyes, something that reminded her of the stars. Place him a dark place and he would be shining brightly; his whole aura a burning mass of light. "What's your favorite star then?"

He stared at her for a moment and smiled brightly.

"It's Annabeth."

. . .

It wasn't long when she started getting jittery and anxious about what she felt for him.

At first, the effects were a subtle one. She would smile wider when Percy's there, or she would instantly brighten from a bad day. Over the time, she grew more fond of his presence and anticipated it every time. Every time.

But Annabeth kept telling herself that it was just one of the effects of their extreme closeness. Their extreme bond. And perhaps, she appreciated their friendship now more than ever.

Yet there were times, of course, when she would be a mess of nerves whenever he kissed her cheek for that matter. Long before, she didn't mind that gesture. But now, overthought small things that she shouldn't bother to think about. Like a kiss on her forehead. From Percy.

Annabeth then wondered what if their bracelets glowed that time. Should these weird things she felt be right if they were soulmates? It was strange. She never thought of it before, the possibility of their bracelets glowing. But now, it was always in the special corner of her mind, where she could pull it out and think of it when she feels the weird stomach thingy act again. And she wondered if Percy felt the same way too. Would he be thinking of the possibility of their bracelets glowing? Of them being soulmates?

Perhaps, he would. Or he wouldn't.

Annabeth hoped he did too. Because when his lips lingered on her forehead for a moment; long enough to present something it shouldn't, she involuntarily shivered.

"Are you okay?" he whispered, his breath fanning hotly on her skin. It smelled like cold peppermint; a flavor of their favorite and Annabeth had the sudden urge to inhale it back.

"Yeah," she answered with a blew of air. She tightened her hold on his back and placed her head on his chest. She closed her eyes and tried to forget everything. All she could see was Percy at the moment.

For a while there, Annabeth thought she imagined him whispering the word _'love'_ in her ears.

. . .

At times, when there's only the moon and the stars, when there's only the darkness of the night around them, they danced silently.

They would stand so close to each other; her chest pressed against his chest, his arms on her back and her cheek beside his cheek. Then they would move slowly, their shadows fleeting over some inaudible rhythm.

There was no music as they danced. But she guessed, that was what made it more beautiful, more intimate. It was as though the world was for them at the moment, the universe spiralling around their fingertips. It felt like they got everything. Even for a short while, it was still everything.

They danced and danced under the light of the stars, midst the darkness of the sky and on top of the world. When she looked into his eyes, they light up so much she thought the stars have crowded inside it.

And somehow, for a second, Annabeth thought she saw their bracelets glow.

. . .

It was a Friday when _it_ happened.

They were sitting on Percy's bed with Annabeth reading him a book. She was leaning against the headboard while he had his head on her lap.

She was at the middle of the story when she poked his cheeks.

He didn't open his eyes.

"You're already dozing off," she pointed out.

"I'm not," he said with a smile. But Percy kept his eyes closed

"You're lying," she argued and poked his cheek again. "I bet you can't even recall what was happening in the story for the past ten minutes."

Annabeth pushed her glasses up and closed the book. And she had nothing to do but watch Percy.

"You're staring at me," he blurted out without even looking at her.

She blushed but didn't deny it. "I have nothing to do."

This time, he did open his eyes. Green eyes stared back at her. "Hey."

"Hey too," she replied back.

Percy laughed a little. Then he reached out a hand to stroke her cheek and trace patterns on her skin. Her face warmed up with the gesture.

He did that for a while before he took her hand and placed it on his pulse point. "Does this feel weird?" he asked without breaking their gaze.

Annabeth felt the blood throbbing just beneath the skin. It seemed a little fast.

"I guess."

Percy sat up in front of her with his legs tucked underneath him. He smiled at her. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Moving a bit closer, he laid her palm flat against his chest. The left side of it. Above his heart.

He seemed too close now; with his heart thumping rather loudly in his shirt. Annabeth could feel the echo of it, the soft sound resounding through her veins. It collided with the sound of her heart too. They were throbbing so loud inside her head that she could barely hear anymore.

His sea green eyes still bored into her and they seemed to lighten up with every passing second. Then he touched the edge of her glasses.

"Can I do something? And please don't get weirded out even though this is really weird," Percy whispered.

"Okay."

"Yeah, okay?"

"Yeah, okay," she repeated.

"Good," he grinned. "Good."

Gently, he took off her glasses. Annabeth closed her eyes as his fingers ghosted over his lids and on the slope of her nose. There was just something beautiful with the way he touched her. It was as though she was a delicate and important masterpiece. Soon enough, she felt his lips on her skin; tracing the path his fingers previously made. Percy trailed chaste kisses on the line of her brows down to her nose.

He stopped just above her lips. "Tell me and I'll stop."

"Don't," she whispered, a bit breathless. "Don't stop."

And when he kissed her, she tasted all, all of him; inhaling for a moment that delightful feeling settling just above her chest and spreading warmth all over her body. Annabeth briefly wondered if this was falling in love felt like, and if it did, then she just wanted nothing but to fall all over and over again.

. . .

As it turned out, they couldn't escape the inevitable.

The topic hung above their heads like a death sentence and somehow it managed to stir some awkwardness in the air around them. Some people would talk behind their backs, saying something about their relationship not being right. Others would just shook their heads at them in pity.

It was as though falling in love not with your soulmate was a sin.

It was a Saturday night and Percy and Annabeth were on the roof, lying on their backs.

Her head was resting on his chest while he traced words on her skin. Everything around them was a flurry of colors from the lights blinking on different buildings. There was only silence around them; except maybe from the broken melody Percy was humming.

"You're thinking," he said.

"Yeah," she admitted. Annabeth raised her head and pinched his nose. He let out an 'ouch'. "You're such a crybaby."

"But it did hurt!" he argued. "What are you thinking by the way?"

She tapped mindlessly on his chin. "I was thinking about us. Is this what we have. . .right?"

"Why?"

"It's just that. . . I've heard the rumors. They were talking about us," she replied.

He rubbed on her scalp. "Are you bothered by it?"

"No. I just think it's unfair that we have to follow those soulmate bracelets. It's like they've got a say about our lives."

Percy laughed. "I remember the time you were so excited about it. With your birthday and all."

"Just because I thought it would glow. When I showed it to you, I mean."

He looked at her with an amused expression. "So you wanted to be my soulmate then?"

Annabeth hit his chest lightly. "Shut up. I just wanted to see it glow. And I thought it's a cool thing to have your bestfriend as your soulmate."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

He turned to her. "Well, if it makes you feel better, I wanted it to glow too. You don't know how disappointed I was when it didn't."

"Really?" She asked.

"Mhmm."

"So I was right," Annabeth chuckled. "I knew you had a crush on me then."

"Yeah. I won't even try to deny it anymore."

They didn't talk much after that. Yet she couldn't help but smile a little wider when she felt him whisper the words 'I love you' on her skin.

. . .

But like all good things, it must come to an end.

Because society was a bitch. And odds and fates had intervened to push them away. To drive them apart.

Yet they still held on. They held and held but it was too much.

Everything was too much.

. . .

His hand was a little bigger than hers.

And it was slowly slipping and slipping and-


End file.
